Jersey City police released shocking footage this afternoon of a home health aide apparently abusing a 91-year-old Jersey City woman.

The health aide, Carmen Pereira, 52, of Freeman Avenue in Jersey City, was charged Sept. 3 with aggravated assault with extreme indifference, endangering the welfare of an incompetent person and neglect of an elderly/disabled person, authorities said.

The footage was caught by a camera the victim's daughter had originally set up in the 91-year-old's room to allow family members from around the country to see the woman.

But the camera recorded Pereira repeatedly manhandling the defenseless woman, slapping her on the chin, and even pulling her hair.

The victim's daughters, Bernadine Samin, of Virginia, and Cresencia Obaldo, a who lives with her mother on Cator Avenue in Jersey City, attended this afternoon's news conference and fought back tears as the footage was shown. The daughters allowed the police to release the video in efforts to raise awareness of this type of abuse, they said.

Obaldo discovered the shocking video footage after she came back from an overnight trip on Aug. 29.

Carmen Pereira

Obaldo turned the camera on before she left and when she returned, her mother had bruises on her body, Obaldo said.

Police said they edited down several hours of video footage taken between Aug. 22-29 to five minutes. Once Pereira was charged, police looked at footage captured over approximately a 32-day period, Det. Michael Post said, adding that abusive behavior occurred each day.

Pereira, who cared for the woman eight hours a day, five days a week for the last 11 years, may face additional charges but is currently out on bail, police said.

"I've been in law enforcement for 30 years and I consider myself a pretty hardened individual, and I have a tough time watching this in its complete format," Jersey City Police Chief Tom Comey said.